However, three of his descendants had died in the war against Wei, especially his eldest grandson from his eldest son, who had died most heroically eleven years ago and in whom he had placed great hopes. The older one gets, the more stubborn they become, and his grief quickly turns into a bone-deep hatred for the Wei people.
When he served in the court, he had to consider the bigger picture, but now that he ran his tavern, couldn’t he do as he pleased? Therefore, Shun Dong Feng inherited their master’s hatred and did not allow Wei people to enter.
Yun Ya stroked his chin thoughtfully, “Are you very familiar with matters between men and women?”
Feng Miao Jun replied without thinking, “I read a lot.” Then she lowered her voice, “I heard Xu Wen Ren say that the Crown Prince was traveling in plain clothes and happened to be dining at Shun Dong Feng. At first, he hated me for bringing him such trouble, but later said it might not be a bad thing, that perhaps fortune could come from misfortune.”
She needed to quickly divert his attention from her taking matters into her own hands.
“The Crown Prince?” Yun Ya’s expression gradually became calm, clearly deep in thought. “What a coincidence.”
Hmm? Judging by his words, could it be that Yun Ya didn’t know the Crown Prince had dined at Shun Dong Feng? Feng Miao Jun blinked. That made sense. No matter how powerful Yun Ya was, he was still an outsider in Yao Capital, and even with his extensive sources of information, he couldn’t compare to local figures like Xu Wen Ren who had direct access to the highest levels.
But if Yun Ya’s target wasn’t the Crown Prince, then who was the target of this operation? Could it be the Wei envoy?
With this thought, Feng Miao Jun’s mind went through countless twists and turns. Just from Yun Ya’s assignment, she knew that the Wei envoy Qiao Tian Xing must have been kept in the dark. As the State Preceptor of the Wei Kingdom, why would he scheme against his own country’s envoy?
This didn’t make sense, unless…
She cautiously glanced at Yun Ya. Could it be that this man only appeared carefree on the surface, but had a difficult time back home?
She had personally witnessed Mo Tizhun’s situation in the Jin Kingdom and knew that although the title of State Preceptor sounded prestigious and the status was noble, there were irreconcilable contradictions with royal power. Could the relationship between Yun Ya and Wei be similar?
This was… interesting.
As she pondered, she looked up to find Yun Ya with arms crossed, staring at her, which made her slightly startled.
Her six senses had originally been sharp, but perhaps because she had become accustomed to his gaze recently, they didn’t warn her. Yun Ya chuckled, “What is An’an thinking about? Even more lost in thought than I am.”
“Nothing,” she decided to be straightforward. “I was wondering what exceptional qualities Xu Wen Ren possesses to be worth the young master’s attention.” She hadn’t witnessed Yun Ya’s previous achievements, but she had seen firsthand how he collapsed the underground palace of Cliff Mountain. Why would such a powerful figure, who could single-handedly rewrite the political and military situation in the Northern Territories and cut off the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of people, send someone to spoil the relationship between Xu Wen Ren and the Wei envoy?
Since she had already joined the camp of the great State Preceptor Yun and done some dirty work, there were some questions she could now ask directly. But she didn’t mention the Wei envoy, only Xu Wen Ren.
“Exceptional qualities?” Yun Ya’s mouth twisted. “Does being lecherous count?”
He emphasized the first two words heavily, making Feng Miao Jun inexplicably blush.
“Although Xu Wen Ren’s position as a city garrison commander isn’t high, his power isn’t small. He commands forty thousand city guards patrolling the capital’s important areas, and he serves by royal decree, so people from all walks of life have to curry favor with him.” Anyone who could control large-scale armed forces in the capital was the monarch’s trusted confidant and beloved general.
So? “Are you planning to attack the city or assassinate the monarch?” She still didn’t understand.
Yun Ya said solemnly, “You’ve guessed it. I plan to take the head of the King of Yao to clear the path for my Wei troops!”
Feng Miao Jun stared at him, unsure for a moment whether he was serious.
Come to think of it, he rarely looked so serious, and even though he wore someone else’s face, he somehow radiated an imposing presence.
Yun Ya gazed at her, “This mission is deadly dangerous. Is An’an afraid?”
Feng Miao Jun looked at him, nodded repeatedly, and made no attempt to hide it: “Afraid!”
Disappointment showed on his face: “I thought An’an would brave fire and water for me, fearless even in death.”
She could indeed brave fire and water for him—nobody in the world cared about his life and death as much as she did. Feng Miao Jun said irritably, “For suicide missions like this, you have death warriors to complete them for you.” She had long understood that in the eyes of these people, the death warriors they raised were not living, breathing human beings, but objects. They could be discarded when broken, or even when not broken. “A child worth a thousand gold doesn’t sit beneath a dangerous wall; how could someone as noble as you undertake a mission with such slim chances of survival?”
Having followed Yun Ya for so long, she had a strange feeling, although without reason or evidence: Yun Ya’s desire to live seemed as strong as her own. Both of them took the matter of “staying alive” equally seriously, so she didn’t believe that Yun Ya would choose to assassinate the monarch of Yao Kingdom if given a choice. Such a task had too high a difficulty factor, even for a State Preceptor.
The royal guards and State Preceptor of the Yao Kingdom were not just for show.
Sure enough, Yun Ya relaxed, like a vigilant cat entering fireplace mode: “A girl being so clever, be careful you won’t be able to marry in the future.”
She smiled: “Thank you for the compliment, young master.”
But Yun Ya said gently: “You’ve done very well on this mission. As a reward, I will take you safely back to Wei.” Originally, someone else was meant to impersonate Madam Yao, but after Feng Miao Jun volunteered, he felt that this girl who could play a dragon like a dragon and a mouse like a mouse was more suitable—perhaps no one else would match her aura so well.
Most importantly, the shape-shifting parasite was too precious, and his subordinates couldn’t use it skillfully yet. In Xu Wen Ren’s eyes, they might have revealed flaws.
Sure enough, she had returned safely.
Having such a person by his side, life wouldn’t be too dull.
Feng Miao Jun was slightly startled by his promise. He might be mercurial, but the State Preceptor’s golden words were jade promises—how could they be easily changed? If he said he could safely take her to Wei, then from now on, she was safe.
Feng Miao Jun let out a long breath, suddenly feeling an unprecedented lightness.
So this was how comfortable it felt not to be constantly on edge.
Her expression made even Yun Ya feel a touch of pity, so he gently stroked her beautiful hair: “Let’s watch one more good show, then we’ll leave.”
Another show?
She blinked, unable to imagine what kind of earth-shattering spectacle would be worthy of his description as a “good show.”
Yun Ya saw through her concerns and said with amusement: “You don’t need to exert any effort next time, just watch the show.”
She sighed in relief: “Good.” That would be best.
Time flew by quickly over the next few days.
Feng Miao Jun resumed her days of attending to the State Preceptor, except this time Yun Ya showed no unusual activities besides eating and wandering around. He seemed truly like an envoy from the Sea Kingdom visiting Yao Capital, though he delegated many negotiation matters to his deputy. The role he played, Chi Zhe, was already known as a man of passion, so appearing somewhat lazy and unrestrained, plus having two or three outbursts of temper while drunk to distance others, his subordinates couldn’t be bothered to be suspicious.